English

of, relating to, or characteristic of England or its inhabitants, institutions, etc.

2.

belonging or relating to, or spoken or written in, the English language: a high-school English class;

an English translation of a Spanish novel.

noun

3.

the people of England collectively, especially as distinguished from the Scots, Welsh, and Irish.

4.

the Germanic language of the British Isles, widespread and standard also in the U.S. and most of the British Commonwealth, historically termed Old English (c450–c1150), Middle English (c1150–c1475), and Modern English (after c1475).

Abbreviation: E.

5.

English language, composition, and literature as offered as a course of study in school.

6.

a specific variety of this language, as that of a particular time, place, or person:

before 900;Middle English;Old EnglishEnglisc, equivalent to Engle (plural) the English (compare LatinAnglī; see Angle) + -isc-ish1

Related forms

Englishness, noun

anti-English, adjective

half-English, adjective

non-English, adjective, noun

pre-English, adjective

pro-English, adjective

pseudo-English, adjective

quasi-English, adjective

world Englishes

[ing-gli-shiz ing-li-shiz] /ˈɪŋ glɪ ʃɪz ˈɪŋ lɪ ʃɪz/

plural noun

1.

the many and varied dialects of English spoken in different parts of the world, including not only American and British English, but such varieties as Indian, Pakistani, Australian, and New Zealand English, as well as the English spoken in various African and Asian countries. In some parts of the world, English is spoken as a natural outgrowth of a colonial period during which certain countries, now independent, were part of the British Empire. In other places, people have been encouraged to learn English because of its widespread use as a language of global communication.

In the singular form, the term world English refers to a movement to promote the use of English globally as an official lingua franca, a means of worldwide communication. There is, however, some concern about whether or not there should be a single standard form of this global language.

English

/ˈɪŋɡlɪʃ/

noun

1.

the official language of Britain, the US, most parts of the Commonwealth, and certain other countries. It is the native language of over 280 million people and is acquired as a second language by many more. It is an Indo-European language belonging to the West Germanic branch See also Middle English, Old English, Modern English

2.

(functioning as pl) the English, the natives or inhabitants of England collectively

3.

(formerly) a size of printer's type approximately equal to 14 point

4.

an old style of black-letter typeface

5.

(often not capital) the usual US and Canadian term for side (sense 16)

"people of England; the speech of England," Old English Englisc (contrasted to Denisc, Frencisce, etc.), from Engle (plural) "the Angles," the name of one of the Germanic groups that overran the island 5c., supposedly so-called because Angul, the land they inhabited on the Jutland coast, was shaped like a fish hook (see angle (n.)).

The term was used from earliest times without distinction for all the Germanic invaders -- Angles, Saxon, Jutes (Bede's gens Anglorum) -- and applied to their group of related languages by Alfred the Great. After 1066, of the population of England (as distinguished from Normans and French), a distinction which lasted only about a generation.

In pronunciation, "En-" has become "In-," but the older spelling has remained. Meaning "English language or literature as a subject at school" is from 1889. As an adjective, "of or belonging to England," from late 13c. Old English is from early 13c.

"spin imparted to a ball" (as in billiards), 1860, from French anglé "angled" (see angle (n.)), which is similar to Anglais "English."

English 1

DMZ

An area now peaceful but recently and perhaps soon again the scene of violence: They had long since passed Ninety-sixth Street, the infamous DMZ/ Traversing Brooklyn's DMZ to go to a steak house

[1980s+; fr the region between North and South Korea designated the Demilitarized Zone when the Korean War ended]

The Dictionary of American Slang, Fourth Edition by Barbara Ann Kipfer, PhD. and Robert L. Chapman, Ph.D.Copyright (C) 2007 by HarperCollins Publishers.Cite This Source

English in Technology

1. (Obsolete) The source code for a program, which may be in any language, as opposed to the linkable or executable binary produced from it by a compiler. The idea behind the term is that to a real hacker, a program written in his favourite programming language is at least as readable as English. Usage: mostly by old-time hackers, though recognisable in context. 2. The official name of the database language used by the Pickoperating system, actually a sort of crufty, brain-damaged SQL with delusions of grandeur. The name permits marketroids to say "Yes, and you can program our computers in English!" to ignorant suits without quite running afoul of the truth-in-advertising laws. ["Exploring the Pick Operating System", J.E. Sisk et al, Hayden 1986]. [Jargon File]